Thomas Whittemore

Dates: 
1871 - 1950

American educator, philanthropist, and supporter of archaeology; he was born in Cambridgeport, Mass., 2 Jan. 1871, son of Joseph W. and Elizabeth St Clair; he received his BA in English Literature from Tufts College; he lectured at Tufts College, Columbia University, and New York University on English and Byzantine and Coptic art; his connection with Egyptology began while serving as American representative for the EES and assisting in excavations at Abydos, Sawama, Balabish, and El-Amarna; he contributed archaeological preliminary reports to JEA; Keeper of Byzantine Coins and Seals in the Fogg Museum, Harvard University; Founder and Director of the Byzantine Institute, Inc.; he is perhaps best remembered for his work on the conservation and restoration of the mosaics in Hagia Sophia carried out with the permission of the Turkish Govt., 1931; he died in Washington, D.C., 8 June 1950.